Roll forming apparatus and system

Abstract

A roll forming apparatus having a shaft member for supporting a head member above a baking container housing a dough mass. The head member can include a plurality of arms with corresponding guide blades disposed therein for contacting a peripheral wall of the container. A tension assembly is mounted about the shaft member for adjusting movement and an outward force of each of the guide blades. Upon insertion in a baking pan, the head member's arms and guide blades divide the dough into a plurality of dough lobes without damaging the container. In a roll forming process, a rack is provided for receiving and transporting the roll forming apparatus over the container. A securing assembly is mountable about the shaft member for permitting the shaft member to resiliently pivot toward a generally perpendicular orientation with respect to the rack after the container pivotally displaces the head member.

Description

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e)(1) of a provisional patent application Ser. No. 60 / 549,044, filed Mar. 1, 2004, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]The invention relates to roll forming devices, particularly roll forming devices adapted to form a roll having a plurality of lobes interconnected by a web of dough.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Bread and dinner roll forming devices, particularly roll forming devices adapted to form a roll having a plurality of lobes have been used. The roll forming devices or stampers typically have a shaft supporting a head or a roll forming body that presses into a ball or mass of dough placed in a baking pan. The roll forming body typically has retractable arms, each of which are coupled to the roll forming body by an internal horizontally oriented spring. Each of the internal springs biases the arms outward and prevent...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0005]In order to minimize health risks and production costs, while increasing productivity, it is desirable that the outwardly directing force of each of the guide blades be adjustable to limit the amount of damage to the inner surface of the baking pans. Moreover, it is also desirable to configure guide blades that are easier and faster to clean.

[0006]The roll forming apparatus, according to the various embodiments of the invention includes a shaft member for supporting a head member above a baking container or baking pan containing a unit of dough. The head member includes arms with corresponding guide blades disposed therein for contacting a peripheral wall of the baking container. A tension assembly is mounted about the shaft for adjusting movement of the guide blades between extended and retracted position. Upon insertion into the baking pan, the head member's arms and guide blades divide the unit of dough into a plurality of dough lobes, interconnected by a web of dough, without damaging the baking pan. In a related embodiment of the invention, the roll forming apparatus is resiliently pivotal to a generally perpendicular orientation with respect to a rack or supporting plate that supports the roll forming apparatus above the baking container.

Problems solved by technology

As a result, the movement of each of the retractable arms becomes restricted over time due to clogging caused by dough accumulation, thereby reducing the life of the roll forming body.

Health concerns can also arise when the roll forming body cannot be properly cleaned due to the fixed nature of each of the retractable arms within the roll forming body.

Since the internal springs constantly exert a fixed outward force upon each of the retractable arms that engage the inner surface of the baking pan, such constant force can eventually damage the baking pans and the protective coatings on the inner surface.

Moreover, any misalignments between the roll forming body and the baking pans can either cause substantial damage to the pan or may require the baking production to be slowed to align the pan with the roll forming body.

As a result, the baking pans can deteriorate more quickly and throughput can be substantially reduced, thereby increasing the overall cost of producing the rolls.

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